Grand Rapids' new Amtrak station proves costlier than expected

GRAND RAPIDS, MI — Work is expected to begin in July on Grand Rapids’ new Amtrak station, which so far is expected to be $593,000 more expensive than anticipated.

Total project costs are expected to fall just shy of $6 million after a series of unexpected developments and other adjustments over the year-and-a-half long planning process, including work the reinforce a city sewer line that will run beneath the station.

Despite the project’s bill ringing up 11 percent higher than expected, the Interurban Transit Partnership on Wednesday gave it the go-ahead by approving a nearly $5.24 million construction contract with Erhardt Construction.

Several variables lent themselves to a costlier project, ITP member Terry Schweitzer said during the ITP Board’s Wednesday meeting.

Earlier this year, engineers discovered a city sewer line situated below the site of the new station was not strong enough to withstand the weight of both it and a new rail spur being built with $3.8 million in Federal Railroad Administration dollars earmarked by Ehlers in 2009, his last term in Congress.

The sewer line discovery prompted Grand Rapids to front $300,000 to help reinforce it, with the ITP contributing roughly $5,400. The city also will pay $85,000 to relocate a fiber optic cable conduit at the site.

What’s more, the station itself was enlarged from 2,130 square feet to 2,800 square feet after analysis by the Michigan Department of Transportation, Amtrak and The Rapid found passenger traffic would be better accommodated by a larger station.

The station is being paid for mostly by an $850,000 grant from Grand Rapids’ Downtown Development Authority, but increasing its size jacked up the cost by $300,000, according to ITP figures.

And there’s even more factors upping the price, Schweitzer said.

“The bidding climate has changed as well. The agency has gotten some very good bids on projects, on public improvement projects,” Schweitzer said, referencing past projects green-lit by the ITP. “But as the economy’s improved, there’s a bit more competitive bidding with private firms.”

Relative to bidding, the costs of steel and money needed to clean up soil contamination at the station's future site also factored into the higher budget.

Peter Varga, CEO of The Rapid, said despite the increase, there is ample money available from state, federal and local sources to fill the cost disparities.

Varga said work on the station largely has been held up by purchase negotiations with CSX Corp., which owns the rail line on which the new Amtrak station will be situated.

Officials previously had broken ground on the station in October last year, with construction expected to start in the spring.

“It’s a really good partnership between Amtrak, the Federal Railroad Administration, the Michigan Department of Transportation, the city of Grand Rapids, the (Grand Rapids) Downtown Development Authority, and us to make this project work,” Varga said. “It’s a rare, unique, collaborative project.”